Environmental Protection for Geothermic Exploratory Drilling in Mexico: Review of a Case Study

Mexican legislation specifically establishes very particular measures in order to prevent and/or to mitigate the potential environmental impacts produced by geothermic exploratory drilling. During 1991, we developed an environmental impact assessment study to evaluate the possible environmental impacts produced by the exploratory drilling at the Las Tres Vı́rgenes Geothermic field. We determined that the geothermic electrical project activities analysed have observed most of the official recommendations. As a result, all the potential environmental impacts are local, restricted in extent and time, and mitigated or reversed.